Ontario Hunter
AH legend
Hook, line, and sinker.On this point, I must agree.
Hook, line, and sinker.On this point, I must agree.
aw, every family/forum has at least one old curmudgeon--they don't hurt anybody.The "Ignore" button is your friend. So far, I haven't had to read the replies of two of our illustrious know it all/resident experts on "pick a topic". YMMV.
Yes, but highly accurate CRF though with no malfunctions. Don't buy the M44 though because the recoil is brutal. AND, within the nonsensical (which I enjoy) posts here of a Buck knife through the eye of a charging duiker or buffalo and such, you'll have the comfort of knowing you have a bayonet available for the above situations and/or or popping the cap off a bottled beer after the hunt since you left the bottle opener back at the lodge/camp. LOLI once heard a mosin nagant described as a pike with the added bonus of throwing bullets. Seems a fitting description.
Wish I could afford a Benchmade? My retired military son in law has several but then the military paid for his. FINE knives!LOL. Folks, if you think Ontario Hunter is worthy of a Ban or Ignore…he’s a guy with a perspective and opinion.
I pointed out that my Safari knife is a Swiss Champ Mini. And it Is.
This thread has also taken a different direction: who needs a knife on a day to day. Or needs a proper Tool on a more than regular basis.
I personally carry a Benchmade Mediator Auto. Why? Because I Live in Tennessee and not California anymore. And I live on a property that has juuust enough stuff always going on where I need a knife.
My secondary knives are a Benchmade OTF (when I’m still feeling put down by The Man of SoCal) and a Boker Carbon Trapper in gentlemen’s mode…
I use a knife constantly here at home. Literally to the point where my Wife just holds a hand out at the store and I put a switchblade in her palm. (*worse yet, she Knows exactly what do…)..
At home, my deer hunting knife is a Buck 102 Woodsman. Smaller fixed blade. I just sold anything else I had - other than my Havalon Piranta. I cannot find a better knife for my needs. Literally any hunting need. I still have two Bernard’s and a very special custom…but they’re not really hunting…admittedly every one of them has cleaned a critter. Somehow, a knife…I feel obligated. The Custom was the perfect knife for my Bison…
On safari though? In Africa? Eh. I CARRY my Swiss Mini. I have an Arno Bernard warthog tusk’d 3.5” blade in my bag/backpack. but I sure don’t carry it with me. And I don’t loan it out unsupervised.
An Africa Safari is a different game. I expect my PH to be exactly that: a Professional Hunter. His job is to be ready for every damn thing. That’s not optional. That’s the job of a PH.
Me? I’m the Baggage with a Gun. And a Paycheck. (*Harsh…but that’s the truth)
I am happy with understanding the roles we play.
And I really do like traveling light on game. We move faster…and a whole lot quieter.
Beautiful knife for skinning!Who would not want to carry this with a fine rifle?
View attachment 585611
All part of the adventure where wood and steel help us pursue our dreams.
Not dependent on PH when hunting as a local, but for me it's all part of the romance. Same reason I walk around in a pair of buffalo hide boots every day...
I have never needed more than a pocket knife while on safari, but I always carry a knife with about a 3.5 inch skinning blade on my belt. It's mostly tradition as most of my hunting is in NA. A belt knife really only weighs a few ounces so why not have it?I'm planning a small utility knife instead of a trademark hunting knife that I see many of you carry when out hunting. Just want to go light and my philosophy is to carry as less of a load specially around the waist as possible. Already feeling the weight of my 12 pound double on long walks. Am I missing something, please educate me..
That was the whole point of my question but I wanted to know different perspectivesOn safari though? In Africa? Eh. I CARRY my Swiss Mini. I have an Arno Bernard warthog tusk’d 3.5” blade in my bag/backpack. but I sure don’t carry it with me. And I don’t loan it out unsupervised.
An Africa Safari is a different game. I expect my PH to be exactly that: a Professional Hunter. His job is to be ready for every damn thing. That’s not optional. That’s the job of a PH.
And I really do like traveling light on game. We move faster…and a whole lot quieter.
Which knife is this, looks neatWho would not want to carry this with a fine rifle?
View attachment 585611
All part of the adventure where wood and steel help us pursue our dreams.
Not dependent on PH when hunting as a local, but for me it's all part of the romance. Same reason I walk around in a pair of buffalo hide boots every day...
What I've gathered is that there are two general groups of people out there, those that have shame and those that don't have shame. The knife is a symptom of something bigger.
I would be ashamed if I'm dressed in business formal attire (charity event, board meeting, funeral, wedding) if I did not have a clean handkerchief to hand to a lady in need.
I would be ashamed if I was at a business meeting about to sign a contract and I needed to borrow a pen.
I would be ashamed to be on a hunt and ask to borrow the guide's binoculars.
I would be ashamed to be on a hunt of any sort and fail to have a knife on me. This very thing happened to me on a kids hunt a month ago and I was knifeless and feeling mighty pathetic.
The same lack of propriety can be said for showing up without a button down shirt, tie, and jacket at a country club. Or showing up for a driven hunt without tweeds or a trachten. Or showing up to meet your date's parents for the first time on a motorcycle. Or not having a jack and jumper cables in your truck and being unable to use them properly when someone is broke down.
In general, shame is supposed to wash over a man with the constant fear that he is useless in a given situation or inappropriate in a given situation. Try not to be useless or inappropriate.
Who would not want to carry this with a fine rifle?
View attachment 585611
All part of the adventure where wood and steel help us pursue our dreams.
Not dependent on PH when hunting as a local, but for me it's all part of the romance. Same reason I walk around in a pair of buffalo hide boots every day...
Mate of mine in SA makes it.Which knife is this, looks neat
Ontario, there will come a Day when “cash $$” might be irrelevant AND You and I might even live to see it…but it is years away and since you appear in “good shape” to enjoy a Loooong & Healthy Life - don’t give up your cash just yet. The expression “Cash is King” exists for a reason and I’m surprised that living in the land of Big Income Taxes (U.S. is close behind) plus GST & PST that you don’t appreciate the advantages that cash can have. All of your points about “rarely need cash” is entirely true and getting more so every year - But (and it’s a big BUT) when you do need cash there’s NOTHING BETTER. I think that today - if you had to have only one or the other - Credit cards might be best (some businesses ie: Airport Kiosks - do NOT take cash). However, Carrying a few $100 in cash wherever you go (and a few $1000 when traveling) never hurts and could come in handy — like a “pocket knife”….couldn’t hurt. Having some cash$$ is like carrying a Pocket Knife - rarely needed but nice to have just in case ! (Boy Scouts are always prepared).…just my POVE-transfers will take care of any emergency tipping I might need to make on this continent. Even little kids have phones and email accounts. A cash machine is never far if there's an emergency that can't be handled electronically. Some folks feel a need to pull big rolls of bills out to impress everyone (e.g. my asshole former father-in-law). That's never been me. I've found more creative ways to be overbearing.
The biggest problem with carrying cash now is even our Canadian "paper money" is plastic. Jeezus is that stuff slippery! In the last half dozen years I know I've lost more than a couple hundred bucks in paper money slipped out of my pockets. Cell phone is the worst culprit. It's always grabbing bills.
I've never needed a knife in safari. I have been able to help out in some situations with my trusty leatherman however. The decision to carry a knife is a personal one.I'm planning a small utility knife instead of a trademark hunting knife that I see many of you carry when out hunting. Just want to go light and my philosophy is to carry as less of a load specially around the waist as possible. Already feeling the weight of my 12 pound double on long walks. Am I missing something, please educate me..
Smitty, I fully relate to your knife and the special value it holds for You - it is more then just a tool or object…even though it performs as one. You asking the “skinners” in Africa to use that knife on your trophies is very understandable. My Father gave me a Buck 110 for Christmas in 1973 when I was 17 and he died 3 years later. That knife cost $20 at the time - a big spend to my Dad for “just a knife” but when he gave it to me he said “this is something a guy likes to have - even if he doesn’t use it”. Well, I’ve used it A LOT…on most big game I’ve taken (1st deer, bear, elk). On the Elk, the Guide wasn’t impressed with my field dressing (I was too slow and getting dark) so he took over - I asked him to “use my knife” and he did just for a few minutes….but that was important to Me and for No Logical Reason. That knife travels with me nearly every hunt and although it’s not always on “active duty” it is close by. I later gave my SOn a Buck 110 on his 17th Christmas with a hand written card explaining the evolving “tradition”, lasted for one of my Birthdays my Sone gave me a Buck 112 that now rides in my pocket and has dressed many game animals. I know Buck are not the best knives made but they are solid, sturdy folders. I’ve purchased and used many knives over the years but only these Bucks really mean anything to me.Sentimental reasons. I carry a knife my cousin made 50 years ago. It has skinned animals and been with me everywhere since. When I went to Africa, it came with me. I passed it to the skinners and asked if they would use it, if even just a little, on each animal. I am not a very sentimental guy, and most things are just that, "things." But that knife means a lot to me, and will go with me wherever I hunt.
When I was a teen, I read a quote from industrialist George Pullman where he explained why he always carried a $100 bill. He said that if he ever was in a train accident and was buried he would extend his hand with the bill in it in order to get the rescuers' attention.... However, Carrying a few $100 in cash wherever you go (and a few $1000 when traveling) never hurts and could come in handy — like a “pocket knife”….couldn’t hurt. Having some cash$$ is like carrying a Pocket Knife - rarely needed but nice to have just in case ! (Boy Scouts are always prepared).…just my POV